


An Object At Rest, Stays At Rest

by Lori Lane (LoriLane)



Series: Science Squad Naps [1]
Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: AND THEN THEY TOOK A NAP, Fluff, Gen, Nap fic, Napping, Platonic Cuddling, science squad, secret lab, so soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-28
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:48:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23364988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LoriLane/pseuds/Lori%20Lane
Summary: “Ortecho, just take a nap. Couch is right there.” Michael smirked, “Lab safety!”She narrowed her eyes at him. He’d been drinking less, but his eyes were bloodshot and the skin around them looked purple. “You first.”“C’mon Liz. I know you closed the Crashdown last night. Just lay down on the couch for a bit. I’m fine.”With a huff she grabbed his arm and dragged him to the couch. “It’s big enough for both of us if we squish. I’ll take a nap if you do. It’s stupid to not share.”
Series: Science Squad Naps [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1681948
Comments: 24
Kudos: 47





	An Object At Rest, Stays At Rest

The couch was Michael’s idea. It was an old beat up thing he found on the curb and hauled onto his truck after determining there were no bed bugs, or other surprises. He learned at a very young age to check for surprises. The lab at the old Indian School had everything they needed. They just needed to get things organized and clean. Kyle rolled his eyes when Michael drove up with a couch in the truck bed, but Michael just insisted every good secret bunker should have a place to pass out when you needed to. 

At first they mostly used it for short breaks. Time to eat a snack? Sit on the couch. Need to make a phone call? Sprawl on the couch. Feeling an inexplicable urge to bang your head against a wall? Just take a break on the couch instead. It was a good couch. Lumpy and ugly, but good. 

As the weeks went on, Liz, Kyle, and Michael slept less and less. Liz was working full time at the Crashdown. Kyle was still on rotations. And Michael was still fixing cars between benders at the Wild Pony. Time was passing, and every day Max being dead felt more and more permanent. They tried everything. And everything failed. Michael even sacrificed parts of his ship in a desperate attempt to create nanotech to bring Max back. It rubbed him raw to see pieces of the console that could bring him home, shattered on the ground. But he needed his brother back. This sacrifice was worth it if only Max would come back.

Liz set up an experiment that would take four hours before it yielded results. With a sigh she folded her arms and rested her head on the table. Four hours, and probably yet another failed response. She startled when Michael put a hand on her shoulder. 

“Ortecho, just take a nap. Couch is right there.” He smirked, “Lab safety!”

She narrowed her eyes at him. He’d been drinking less, but his eyes were bloodshot and the skin around them looked purple. “You first.”

“C’mon Liz. I know you closed the Crashdown last night. Just lay down on the couch for a bit. I’m fine.” 

With a huff she grabbed his arm and dragged him to the couch. “It’s big enough for both of us if we squish. I’ll take a nap if you do. It’s stupid to not share.” 

Michael hesitated. He didn’t want it to be weird. But he was tired. He was bone wearily exhausted. He felt like he hadn’t properly slept in weeks. When Liz shoved him towards the couch, he rolled his eyes at her and scooted all the way to the back of the couch on his side. She joined him without comment. On her side, she fit perfectly with no room to spare. After a moment, Michael looped an arm around her waist so she wouldn’t fall off the couch if she moved in her sleep. 

His face was buried in her hair. It had been a long time since he was close enough to another person to smell their shampoo. Michael tilted his face forwards so his forehead rested against the back of Liz’s head, her veil of hair shielding him from the harsh fluorescent lights. This felt right. He closed his eyes…

Liz could feel the moment Michael fell asleep. His deep even breaths huffed against her neck. He was warmer than she was used to. He smelled like rain, like Max. Her heart hurt but as Michael’s arm tightened against her waist, she felt protected and cared for. She drifted off.

When Kyle entered the lab, he expected to see his two colleagues sniping at each other as they had been for the past few weeks. Short tempers and creative complaining. The lab was rarely quiet. But it was eerily quiet now. It took him a moment to find them, curled up like puppies on the couch. Despite himself, he smiled. They were adorable. 

Michael twisted himself closer to Liz, trying to fuse with her as he shivered slightly. They never did get the space heater installed. Kyle pulled the ugly quilt off the back of the couch, and draped it over them. Michael immediately relaxed. Adorable. Kyle pulled out his iphone and snapped a quick picture. He wasn’t sure if it was for blackmail, or just because the sight of the two of them at rest made his belly warm in a way he didn’t anticipate. 

Kyle checked the lab equipment. The alarm was set to go off in four hours, and there was nothing he could do until the results were ready. His eyes kept drifting to the two bodies, curled up on the couch. There wasn’t space for him there, but… he could sit on the floor and lean against the couch. Maybe play on his phone a bit. Just something to distract him from the passage of time. Without even thinking of it, his head tilted back and rested against Liz’s belly where her hand covered Guerin’s. Liz’s eyes fluttered open for just a second, registering the new body in orbit, and her hand gently raked through his hair, soothing both of them. Feeling Liz’s stomach rise and fall with each breath, as her hand absentmindedly carded through his hair, he closed his eyes. 

When the alarm went off four hours later, the three of them jolted to wakefulness. Michael just barely kept Liz from falling off the couch, with a steady hand on her hip. They untangled themselves from the quilt, and each other, and went to check the results.

Failure.

As expected. 

But it didn’t hit as hard. Didn’t hurt as much. They felt ready to try a different approach, and felt more clear headed than they had in ages. 

Liz pronounced, “Okay Science Squad clearly needs group naps for morale. So we’re doing that again tomorrow.”

Michael rolled his eyes, “We’re not calling ourselves that.”

Kyle shoved his shoulder gently, “But we are taking another nap tomorrow.” 

And with a shrug, Michael agreed. Liz fully intended on taking turns on the couch, and couldn’t wait to see what happened when she insisted Kyle be the big spoon to Michael’s little spoon. Science squad definitely required more naps.

**Author's Note:**

> I can be found on Tumblr[ @angsty-aliens](https://angsty-aliens.tumblr.com)


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